Today our poodle Marshal, who is 7 years old and 30 lbs was attacked. This time of year the coyotes are looking for animals larger than rabbits and pack rats to feed their young.
I took this picture of a coyote that thought he was hiding. This coyote was about a quarter mile from home and just off the main road.
Coyotes will eat scraps of food, small animals, all kinds of native plants including prickly pear and mesquite beans. They raid trash cans for human food. But one of their favorite dishes is people's dogs and cats.
Even though I was screaming at the coyote, he was still attacking until my husband was close enough to almost club him. They don't run until the last minute in their attempt to kill and run off with the animals. Just yelling at them from a distance doesn't phase them.
Marshal is 7 years old and has not been attacked before, so what happened this time? It was my fault for not being cautious enough. I had the front gate open while I was in the storage room in the back yard. I thought I could hear if there was anything on the property. Marshal is good about growling or barking when we have intruders. Where Marshal was attacked was at the edge of his typical marking area, and I don't think he knew the coyote was there until he was attacked. Chuck and I heard the ruckus and ran to rescue him.
Marshal will be fine, though we did have to take him to the vet for stitches in the puncture wounds around his head and shoulders.
Aww, sorry this happened T. I hope all works out well. Remember to watch for infection over the next few days. My dog got attacked on my property by a stray dog. I ended up having to give him antibiotics because the puncture wounds got infected. You can get the antibiotic in injection form at the feed stores in town.
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